Section 5-5: The Spread of Hellenistic Culture

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Hellenistic- Greek culture blended with Egyptain, Persian and Indian influences.
Alexandria- A city located in Egypt that became the center of commerce and Herllenistic civilization.
Euclid- a higholy regarded mathematician who 65taught in Alexandria.
Archimedes- A inportant scientists who accurately estimated pi and he explained the law of the lever.
Colossus of Rhodes- The largest known Hellenistic statue made on the island of Phodes. Bronze that is about 100 feet tall.

Setting The Stage:
- Alexanders working spread Greek cultrue and bhrought together nations when it camwe to culture.
Hellenistic Culture in Alexandria:
- Alexanders work resulted in a new culture. Greeks merged with Egyptain Persian and Indain culture to form a new type of culture called Hellenistic. They create a new language rrom this cultral blend. this helped the people from the differnt cities comuunicate which helped with trade.
Trade and Cultral Diversity:
- The city of Alecandria was the center of this culture.They also were in agood location for sea trade. this trade and coomerce aloud tyhem to grow.
Alexandria's Attractions:
- Alexandria had great beauty. It's broad avenues were lined with Greek statues of the gods. There were magnificent palaces. There was a tomb with Alexander's glass coffin. There was a large lighthouse called Pharos that ha a large polish bronze mirror that reflecte the fire. The greatests attractions were the library and the museum. The museum was dedicated to the Mises the goddesses of art and science.
-The library had half a million papyrus scrools. It was the worlds first research library that promoted scholars.
Science and Technology:
- Hellenistic scholars particularly the ones on Alexandria preserved Greek and Egyptain learnin in sciences. These scholars provided the most scientific knowledge in the west.
Astronomy:
-the library had a small observatory. One astronomer Arstarchus reached two scientific conclusions. He estimated the sun was about 300 times the size of the sun. He also proposed thaT earth and the other planets rotated around the sun. Othe scientists did not support this. But later they did.
- Eratosthenes tw director of the Alandrian Library true to calculate the Earths true size. He cumputerhe earths circumference to be about 28000-2900 miles. Modern measurements put it at 24,860 miles. He was also a poet an historian.
Mathematics and Physics:
- Euclid qtaught math in Alexandria. His best known book was elements containing 465 carefully Presented geometry proposition and proof.
- Archimedes accurately calculated pi and explained the lay of the lever.
- gifted in geometry and physics Archimedes made a skrew a divide used to raise water from the ground and the compound pully to lift heavy objects. Hellenistic scientist later built a force pump pneumatic machines and even a steam engine.
Philosophy and Art:
- Two major philsophies developed because they questioned how people should live their lives.
Stoicism and Epicureanism:
-a philosopher named Zeno founded a school of philosophy called Stoicism. Stoics said that people should live there lives in harmony with the will of god or the natural laws that god established to run the universe. They also preached that humans desire power and wealth were dangerous distractions that should be checked.
- Epicurus founde a school that was called Epicureanism l. He taught that gods who had no interstes with humans ruled the universe. Epicurus believed that only real objects with five Seneca perceived. He taught that greatest good and tw highest pleasure came from virtuous conduct and the absence of pain. Epicureans proposed that the main goals of humans was to achieve harmony if the body and mind.
Realism in Sculpture:
- sculpture was also big in Hellenic culture similar to the Greeks.
- Hellenic sulphide moved away from harmonized balance and idealize forms of classical age. They created more natural works instead of formin the perfect body when they sculpted
- in 150BC the hellenic world declined a new city of raomenwas growing and gaining strength.